NationStates Jolt Archive


XBOX 360, Who's got it? Who knows something about it?

Zendragon
22-10-2006, 03:47
I am hoping to get some questions answered about this console.
I have a friend who paid the obscenely overpriced retail for an XBOX 360. He's had it a week and can't even afford to buy any games yet.

He bought it believing that he could play the old XBOX games on this new console. I can't find anything in the paperwork or on the site that says this is possible. Can anyone clear this up for us?

Also, he has virtually zero internet experience. And, I find the XBOX Live site to be loaded with information--except for what I want to know. Uhm, is there subscription fee for "Silver". I know there is for "Gold".

Also, can he purchase games online and then download them from the site?

Help! Handholding needed. Can anyone clarify the features of the 360 (compared with the old version) in an organized and coherent way so that a simpleton can understand?

Thank you very much.
LazyOtaku
22-10-2006, 03:49
I am hoping to get some questions answered about this console.
I have a friend who paid the obscenely overpriced retail for an XBOX 360. He's had it a week and can't even afford to buy any games yet.

He bought it believing that he could play the old XBOX games on this new console. I can't find anything in the paperwork or on the site that says this is possible. Can anyone clear this up for us?

Also, he has virtually zero internet experience. And, I find the XBOX Live site to be loaded with information--except for what I want to know. Uhm, is there subscription fee for "Silver". I know there is for "Gold".

Also, can he purchase games online and then download them from the site?

Help! Handholding needed. Can anyone clarify the features of the 360 (compared with the old version) in an organized and coherent way so that a simpleton can understand?

Thank you very much.

Some XBox games are upwards compatible.

EDIT: Like this one: http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2006/01/09
Jeruselem
22-10-2006, 03:54
Some XBox games are upwards compatible.

EDIT: Like this one: http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2006/01/09

Yep! Microsoft used an nVidia in the original XBOX but put in an ATI video card in the XBOX 360. Only major XBOX games work on the XBOX 360 due to this change.
Montacanos
22-10-2006, 03:58
Its the only Console Halo: Wars is going on :mad: PC strategy buffs are miffed.
Dinaverg
22-10-2006, 04:20
Bwahaha! *point and laugh*
Jeruselem
22-10-2006, 04:55
My opinion - consoles are scams
(1) Hardware is locked so badly - and then if you mod it, it's illegal or becoming illegal.
(2) You can overprice console games so easily because there's far less competition
(3) Backward and forward compatibility is always can issue because always seem to change hardware specs on a whim
(4) Consoles use special discs if they use discs
(5) You can't fix a console like PC either. With a PC you change bits easily, consoles are closer to laptops but everything is integrated.
M3rcenaries
22-10-2006, 06:11
Some quick answers:
Newer xbox games will be available; such as Halo2, doom3, etc. Silver is free and alows you access the the xbox market place where your friend can get demos to play while he regroups his money. It is a good way to tell which games you should get and which ones you shouldnt.
Kanabia
22-10-2006, 07:04
Its the only Console Halo: Wars is going on :mad: PC strategy buffs are miffed.

Not this one.
Poitter
22-10-2006, 10:08
if you get on x-box live you can downaload an e-mulator to play just about all original x-box games on 360 (i think you can actually download them on your PC and burn them onto a CD which can then download onto yor 360)

if your freind wnats to buy a 360 game the best value for money is definatly Elderscrolls: Oblivion

kick ass game simply kick ass.
The Potato Factory
22-10-2006, 10:33
I got a 360. It's pretty good. I don't think there are any killer games yet, like Halo was for the original (although Dead Rising might come close, I haven't played it).

Still, I think I prefer the XBox for now. Modchips are my friend.
BackwoodsSquatches
22-10-2006, 10:35
I have two friends who both got it the first day it was available for sale in the US.

The games are indeed incredible looking, and the animations are incredible, with so much detail and movement.
Individual blades of grass,for instance, move independantly like real grass would.

At any rate, the nifty thing is that the xbox 360 is Windows compatible.
This means you can plug it into your computer, and you can play your entire mp3 collection on your home stereo, and television.

Dvd files....

etc...

It essentially becomes the entertainment hub of your home.

You can download all sorts of movie trailers, game previews, and all that crap, as well.

Did I mention the wireless controllers?
Radio signaled, so they have an excellent range.

This means you can sit your fat ass on the couch, way across the room with your chips, and Mt Dew, and rest comfortably in Gamer Heaven.

The drawbacks so far seem to be the high price tag, and the limited selection of game titles.
However, this is to be expected, as the system is still fairly new.
The Potato Factory
22-10-2006, 10:38
Yeah, the streaming audio is killer. Sony will be kicking themselves if there's nothing like that. One thing that set XBox apart from the PS2 was the custom soundtracks, and this is a step up from that.
Imperial isa
22-10-2006, 10:42
Yeah, the streaming audio is killer. Sony will be kicking themselves if there's nothing like that. One thing that set XBox apart from the PS2 was the custom soundtracks, and this is a step up from that.

i love that part were you can kill things in a game with your own custom soundtracks playing away in the back ground
Pure Metal
22-10-2006, 11:10
I am hoping to get some questions answered about this console.
I have a friend who paid the obscenely overpriced retail for an XBOX 360. He's had it a week and can't even afford to buy any games yet.

the games are really (especially) overpriced

He bought it believing that he could play the old XBOX games on this new console. I can't find anything in the paperwork or on the site that says this is possible. Can anyone clear this up for us?
you can do this but it doesn't work for every game, and for many you'll need to be connected to xbox live to get an emulator/patch thingy, or so i understand

Also, he has virtually zero internet experience. And, I find the XBOX Live site to be loaded with information--except for what I want to know. Uhm, is there subscription fee for "Silver". I know there is for "Gold".
you can't browse the net with xbox live, but you can download game demos and videos pretty good, and get extra content for games.
the "internet experience" depends on the game and how much it uses the net... and if your friend has no games then the experience won't be good :p

silver is free and gives you access to downloadable content and leaderboards and stuff
gold is free for a month but is subscription after that. gold is what you need to play multiplayer (for games that support it) over live

Also, can he purchase games online and then download them from the site?
some games, yes. but mostly arcade stuff, and not the big titles

Help! Handholding needed. Can anyone clarify the features of the 360 (compared with the old version) in an organized and coherent way so that a simpleton can understand?

Thank you very much

xbox: better graphics than ps2
360: waaaay better graphics again

xbox: tv
360: HDTV (if you got one then it looks so damn good :D)

xbox: could play some music if you ripped it onto the HD
360: can have external harddrives plugged in via USB and play music and pictures off that (which i do, and it rocks!), can interface with windows media centre or an winXP PC (with upgrade from www.xbox.com/pcsetup/,

360: smoother than xbox

xbox: best controller yet for a console (the original one!)
360: better because its just as comfy but its wireless!



i got a 360 a couple of weeks ago and i have to say i'm immensely pleased with it :D
in fact i only have one gripe, and that's that The Outfit, a game i got free with the console, doesn't support PAL60 and that's all my TV does, so i can't play it. so i'll be returning that for another game soon :P
Imperial isa
22-10-2006, 11:30
there is one thing i hate about the 360 an its were they place the back and start buttons and that the only thing i dont like
an that i dont have the cash for it right now
SHAOLIN9
22-10-2006, 13:31
i got a 360 a couple of weeks ago and i have to say i'm immensely pleased with it :D
in fact i only have one gripe, and that's that The Outfit, a game i got free with the console, doesn't support PAL60 and that's all my TV does, so i can't play it. so i'll be returning that for another game soon :P

Aw man I had The Outfit, after about ten minutes you realise that the game is actually pretty shit:(

Dead Rising's great fun get that! Elder Scrolls Oblivion's v.good, Dead or Alive 4 is great and also the best game on XBOX Live IMO.;)
Imperial isa
22-10-2006, 13:36
Aw man I had The Outfit, after about ten minutes you realise that the game is actually pretty shit:(

Dead Rising's great fun get that! Elder Scrolls Oblivion's v.good, Dead or Alive 4 is great and also the best game on XBOX Live IMO.;)

Dead Rising's that the one in the mall is it not
hell i get that one it looks cool
Elder Scrolls Oblivion's that one iam going to get as well as quake and gears wars
Dryks Legacy
23-10-2006, 10:53
Did I mention the wireless controllers?
Radio signaled, so they have an excellent range.

xbox: best controller yet for a console (the original one!)
360: better because its just as comfy but its wireless!

Why does everyone talk about the wireless controllers like they are new and exciting technology?
Pure Metal
23-10-2006, 11:38
At any rate, the nifty thing is that the xbox 360 is Windows compatible.
This means you can plug it into your computer, and you can play your entire mp3 collection on your home stereo, and television.

Dvd files....

etc...

It essentially becomes the entertainment hub of your home.


DVD files? do you know how/what software they're using for that? cos i got the microsoft extender thingy and it lets me stream audio and pictures from my computer over LAN, but not video files (AVI, dvix, VOB etc) and i really wish it would!



Still, I think I prefer the XBox for now. Modchips are my friend.
that's why i'm keeping my old xbox - i got a modchip set for it but its impossible to fit! it'd be easy for a v1.1 - 1.6 xbox, but i got mine really early on and its a v1.0... which means the modchip isn't so easy to install :(
might get it sent off to be done properly if i can't stream movie files to my tv with the 360 - just put linux on the modded xbox and run em off a new HD there *nods*

Aw man I had The Outfit, after about ten minutes you realise that the game is actually pretty shit:(

Dead Rising's great fun get that! Elder Scrolls Oblivion's v.good, Dead or Alive 4 is great and also the best game on XBOX Live IMO.;)
lol then i didn't miss much ;) good :P
swapped it and Just Cause (not the sort of game i'm looking for atm) for Battlefield 2 (cos it rocks and the PC version doesn't support my graphics card :() and a £17 profit :D
Swilatia
23-10-2006, 12:32
My opinion - consoles are scams
(1) Hardware is locked so badly - and then if you mod it, it's illegal or becoming illegal.
(2) You can overprice console games so easily because there's far less competition
(3) Backward and forward compatibility is always can issue because always seem to change hardware specs on a whim
(4) Consoles use special discs if they use discs
(5) You can't fix a console like PC either. With a PC you change bits easily, consoles are closer to laptops but everything is integrated.

i agree with you. thats why I only play PC games. In fact, consoles are not very popular here in Poland, possibly because people realise it is a scam.
Swilatia
23-10-2006, 12:34
Dead Rising's that the one in the mall is it not
hell i get that one it looks cool
Elder Scrolls Oblivion's that one iam going to get as well as quake and gears wars

no. if you want Oblivian, get it for the PC.
Imperial isa
23-10-2006, 12:38
no. if you want Oblivian, get it for the PC.

iam using a old pc right now as i got no money to get a new motherboard or update bits
fact i got no cash to buy the 360 when it came down to it :(
Pure Metal
23-10-2006, 12:45
i agree with you. thats why I only play PC games. In fact, consoles are not very popular here in Poland, possibly because people realise it is a scam.

i used to be a PC gamer, through and through... but now i've moved over entirely to consoles and casual gaming. the reason being i was tired of constantly having to upgrade my PC, spending almost the equivalent cost of a console on new graphics cards (particularly expensive) and the rest just to be able to play the latest games.
with consoles i don't have to worry about that at all, or about how well a game is going to run... i just shell out 300 quid for the console and for the next 3 years i'll have guarenteed gaming goodness, as well as the extra comfort of being able to play on my tv (which is a bigger screen than my monitor, of course) and on my sofa/bed :)

yes console games are more expensive and probably thinner on the ground, but for me this is not an issue as i actually play relatively few games (compared to what i used to or what my friends do) so laying out an extra 15 or 20 quid for each game is a minor cost compared to the benefit i find from playing on me console :)
Imperial isa
23-10-2006, 13:02
i used to be a PC gamer, through and through... but now i've moved over entirely to consoles and casual gaming. the reason being i was tired of constantly having to upgrade my PC, spending almost the equivalent cost of a console on new graphics cards (particularly expensive) and the rest just to be able to play the latest games.
with consoles i don't have to worry about that at all, or about how well a game is going to run... i just shell out 300 quid for the console and for the next 3 years i'll have guarenteed gaming goodness, as well as the extra comfort of being able to play on my tv (which is a bigger screen than my monitor, of course) and on my sofa/bed :)

yes console games are more expensive and probably thinner on the ground, but for me this is not an issue as i actually play relatively few games (compared to what i used to or what my friends do) so laying out an extra 15 or 20 quid for each game is a minor cost compared to the benefit i find from playing on me console :)

i here with that one
the cost just to update for playing new games is a killer
an to lay on my bed to play a game is all so good then playing away at a game in a hard seat at the pc
Andaluciae
23-10-2006, 13:08
Yep! Microsoft used an nVidia in the original XBOX but put in an ATI video card in the XBOX 360. Only major XBOX games work on the XBOX 360 due to this change.

Out of the box, of course, you have to download the updates through XBox Live to be able to get the emulators to play the games.
Imperial isa
23-10-2006, 13:17
Out of the box, of course, you have to download the updates through XBox Live to be able to get the emulators to play the games.

dam thats all i need to hear
i got the stuff to start XBox live for the my xbox now just cant get it to work
an now you tell me this that makes me more sad
Jeruselem
23-10-2006, 13:41
Out of the box, of course, you have to download the updates through XBox Live to be able to get the emulators to play the games.

I've already downloaded a bunch of emulators for the XBOX and Playstations, all I need is some discs to test.
The Atlantian islands
23-10-2006, 13:45
I have 360 and the first game I got with it (Perfect Dark) I was dissapointed.

HOWEVER, a soon as Hitman and Splinter Cell Double Agent came rolling out ( I have both of those) Xbox became fucking awesome.

Also, I still play Halo 2 on it.
Wilgrove
23-10-2006, 13:50
You know what's funny, selling the Xbox 360 Box, on Ebay and having people pay you outragious prices because they think it's the actual game, and they didn't bother to read the discription or anything else. I gotta get me one of those box and see how much I can make.
Vegan Nuts
23-10-2006, 14:41
if your freind wnats to buy a 360 game the best value for money is definatly Elderscrolls: Oblivion

I bought the system just to play that game. it owned my soul for 4 months. that game rocks. hard.
Vegan Nuts
23-10-2006, 14:48
if your freind wnats to buy a 360 game the best value for money is definatly Elderscrolls: Oblivion

I bought the system just to play that game. it owned my soul for 4 months. that game rocks. hard.
Poitter
23-10-2006, 16:25
I bought the system just to play that game. it owned my soul for 4 months. that game rocks. hard.

Same, i was gonna wait for the PS3 but after morrowind GOTY on my X-box and i saw oblivion on 360's list i just though screw it, besid x-box has better controlers
Oblivion still owns my soul, and my life when i'm not at work.
SHAOLIN9
23-10-2006, 22:43
Dead Rising's that the one in the mall is it not
hell i get that one it looks cool
Elder Scrolls Oblivion's that one iam going to get as well as quake and gears wars

Yeah it is, it's v.funny, everything becomes a weapon, you go into toy shop grab big lego heads, stick em on the zombies and watch em bump into stuff. It's genius! Quake was one of the first games I bought, it is good, but there's a bit of MAJOR slow-down on one bit for some reason and at that point nothing on-screen should be causing that. Bad coding IMO save money and get that on pc if your'll run it. Gears of War looks pretty good stuff, but it's not out yet, coming soon though I think.

lol then i didn't miss much ;) good :P
swapped it and Just Cause (not the sort of game i'm looking for atm) for Battlefield 2 (cos it rocks and the PC version doesn't support my graphics card :() and a £17 profit :D

Nope you really didn't I hate it when they bang on about how great a game's gonna be and then when it turns up it's pap:(

I've taken to downloading demo's off xbox live (not sure if you have to be a gold member for that). I tried Just Cause, it was ok but didn't seem good enough for me to buy (I have shit all money at mo:() Hopefully I'm gonna sell my soul soon to pick up the new Splinter Cell:)

iam using a old pc right now as i got no money to get a new motherboard or update bits
fact i got no cash to buy the 360 when it came down to it :(

Ah, pc won't run Quake 4 then and no 360! wOOt! sux to be you:(

I have 360 and the first game I got with it (Perfect Dark) I was dissapointed.

HOWEVER, a soon as Hitman and Splinter Cell Double Agent came rolling out ( I have both of those) Xbox became fucking awesome.

Also, I still play Halo 2 on it.

I know what you mean, Perfect Dark was labelled as the "killer app" but it's pretty average IMO and more for younger gamers maybe? It's ok. Hitman was great! Fight Night, Kameo, Call of Duty 2 and Table Tennis rocked my world also! I keep meaning to try Halo 2 over xbox live. I never finished the Halo's and I am intending to play my way through them again but have too much to play at mo. I've started playing Half-Life (my fav game way better than HL2 IMO) on the pc again, also NS and MSN are devouring all spare time so I've kinda neglected my Xbox *kicks self*
Dobynsopolis
24-10-2006, 03:28
Here is a list of backwards compatible games if you still need them.

http://www.xbox.com/en-US/games/backwardcompatibilitygameslist.htm
Harlesburg
24-10-2006, 08:27
I know that Playstation is better.
Jeruselem
24-10-2006, 13:28
The XBOX 360 hard drive is 20Mb - but it's $US99, or about $125 in Australia dollars. Considering I can buy a brand new SATA 160Gb hard drive for the same price, yow.